Device for tearing off pieces of a certain length from a strip

ABSTRACT

A device is used for tearing off pieces of a definite length from a flexible strip which has perforated lines forming tongues spaced along the length of the strip. The portions connecting the tongues to the rest of the strip extend at right angles to the longitudinal direction of the strip. The tongues have narrow ends extending in the discharge direction of the strip. The strip is guided by a unit which guides the tongues in a different direction from that in which the strip is guided so as to facilitate the operation of a tear-off unit.

United States Patent [191 Ehrlund [4 1 May 27, 1975 DEVICE FOR TEARING OFF PIECES OF A CERTAIN LENGTH FROM A STRIP [76] Inventor: Ake Ehrlund, Alvkvarnsvagen 177,

Spanga, Sweden 221 Filed: Jan. 24, 1973 211 Appl. No.: 326,457

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Jan. 26, 1972 Sweden 846/72 [52] US. Cl. 225/77; 225/39; 225/88; 225/91 [51] Int. Cl B26f 3/02 [58] Field of Search 225/39, 25, 26, 53,77, 225/80, 88, 90, 91

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,221,213 11/1940 Borden 225/77 X 3,007,619 11/1961 Burcz 225/90 X 3,088,640 5/1963 Kunsch 225/91 X FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 1,218,492 6/1966 Germany 225/91 Primary Examiner-Andrew R. Juhasz Assistant ExaminerLeon Gi1den Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Richards & Geier 57 ABSTRACT A device is used for tearing off pieces of a definite length from a flexible strip which has perforated lines forming tongues spaced along the length of the strip. The portions connecting the tongues to the rest of the strip extend at right angles to the longitudinal direction of the strip. The tongues have narrow ends extending in the discharge direction of the strip. The strip is guided by a unit which guides the tongues in a different direction from that in which the strip is guided so as to facilitate the operation of a tear-off unit.

5 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures PATENTED MAY 2 7 I975 SHEET SHEET PATENTEB HAYZ 7 I975 ll/I/I DEVICE FOR TEARING OFF PIECES OF A CERTAIN LENGTH FROM A STRIP This invention relates to appliances which comprise a strip provided with perforations or punched lines, which strip is fed forward and is torn 'off by means of a pull at that end of the strip which is at that time the free end. 1

However, such known appliances which are used primarily for the issue of queuing and similar tickets are not as reliable in operation as one has the right to expect.

The object of this invention has therefore primarily been the creation of a device which is particularly reliable in operation and also has a simple construction.

In order to accomplish these and other aims, the device is designed in accordance with theclaims.

Three constructional versions of the invention are shown as examples in the attached drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a first constructional version of the invention, with the casing indicated by chain lines.

FIG. 2 shows the discharge portion of the casing, viewed from the free end of the strip, the cover being raised. I

FIG. 3 shows a somewhat modified constructional version of the invention, the cover of the casing being indicated by chain lines.

FIG. 4 shows in perspective a second constructional version of the invention, in which the casing and/or the cover may be of the throw-away type.

FIG. 5 shows in perspective a plastic component, most conveniently made by injection moulding, which forms part of the constructional version according to FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 shows in a side view and partly in section a third embodyment of the device according to the invention.

In the figures 1 denotes the casing of the appliance while 2 denotes a cover which is joined to the cacing by means ofa pivot 3, about which it may be raised and lowered. Together, the casing and the cover format the side which is on the right in the Figure, a guide for the discharge of a strip placed in the casing in the shape of a roll which has the general designation 4. This strip, which is most appropriately made of paper, is punched through along lines 50, 5b at a regular spacing so as to form a number of flaps 6 which, as shown in the Figure, have the property that'their width is least at the free end and largest at the end 7 which is connected to the rest of the strip. In this connection, it may be pointed out that it is not necessary for these flaps to be completely punched out as shown in the Figure, but that it is possible to replace the'punched lines by lines of perforation. Y

The casing and the cover are constructed so that together they form a discharge and tear-off device for the strip. To this end, the cover 2 has a portion 8, the. orientation of which may be parallel to a tangent to the roll which the strip 4 forms. This portion is connected to a vice is used, is substantially parallel to the portion 8 but is situated at some distance from this, so that there is between these parts a gap through which the strip can pass. The part 12, as seen in FIG. 2, is connected to a tongue 13 which is substantially an extension of the part 12. The greatest width of the'tongue 13 which, as seen in the Figure, is appropriately wider at its base than at its free end, is less than the greatest width of the flaps 6. The tongue extends almost up to the inside of the portion 9 of the cover which is pointing downwards, i.e., in such a way that there is formed a gap through which the strip can pass. At its base, the tongue is connected by means of portions 14a, 14b, which are constructed as tear-off devices, to the side walls 15a, 15b of the casing which, together with the tongue 13, constitute the second portion of the said guide.

In the position in which it is used, the cover 2 is lowered over the casing as shown in FIG. 1. The strip has been passed through the horizontal guide formed by the surfaces 8,12 and the upper parts of 15a, 15b and through the'vertical guide formed by the surface 9, the end portion of the tongue 13 and guide projections, not shown, on the inside of the side faces 11 of the cover.

When it is desired to tear off a queuing ticket, the clap 6 is to be gripped and the strip pulled downwards by means of this. The causes the strip to move first horizontally and then'vertically. When the strip has been pulled forward so far that the width of the opening formed by the punched lines 5a,5b exceeds the width of the tongue 13, the strip itself will be deflected in such a way that in its final position,'as shown in FIG. 1, in which the width of the flap 6 is practically the same as that of the tongue 13 at its base, the strip is deflected about this base portion. It will be clear that, as the strip continues to be pulled downwards, it will be torn off by the cutting edges 14a, 14b provided for this tue of the fact that there is a space between the front wall 16 of the casing and the inside of the front wall of the cover, the flap fed forward is readily accessible.

'When the queuing ticket, which thus consists of a flap 6 and strip material up to the next flap, has been torn off, the strip'is again in its initial position and a new queuing ticket can immediately be drawn forward. Naturally, the strip can in a known manner be provided with the desired wording and a queuing number, ticket number or similar 17. It is also possible, for instance, to provide two flaps in the shape of right-angled triangles situated side by side and facing opposite ways, etc.

In the'constructional version according to FIG. 3, the lower horizontal guide for the strip does not consist of continuous partsbut is made up of a preferably resilient rear tongue 18 which is attached to the inside of the casing l or is made integral with this, and a front part 19 which is appropriately part of the front wall of the casing and comprises the cutting edges 20a, 20b corresponding to the edges 14a,14b in FIG. 1 and a tongue 21 corresponding to the tongue 13, but, contrary to this, positioned at an angle. The upper parts of the tongues 18, 21 will thus form the bottom part of the horizontal guide for the strip. The cutting edges 20a,20b are situated at a level below this. In this constructional version, especially if the tongue 18 is made of a resilient material, the tongue can abut onto the part 8, and by pressing the strip against this part 8, can give rise to a frictional force which prevents unintentional retraction of the strip into the casing.

The invention also makes possible production of discharge appliances at an extremely low cost, whereby the whole appliance or part thereof may consist of a throw-away article. Such a device, particularly designed for the sale of tickets at sporting and similar events, is shown in FIG. 4.

In this constructional version the casing consists of a simple cardboard box 22. This box at the same time serves as a container for the strip 4 which, as in the constructional version described earlier, is appropriately in the shape of a roll and is made in the same way. The box is closed by a cover 23 which extends outside the box and has a slot in one of its end walls.

An injection moulded part 24 is attached to the cover and the two parts together serve as the guides for the strip. The component comprises a first flat portion 25 which is to abut onto one front wall 26 of the box. At the top of the flat portion 25, as shown in FIG. 5, there are two cutting edges 26a, 26b separated in the lateral direction, and between these the portion 25 is joined to a portion 27 which is bent in an are downwards and backwards, and a tongue (28) extending forwards and upwards. The arcuate portion 27 is provided with resilient projections 29a, 2% which are directed upwards and are also arcuate, the top parts of which are situated at approximately the same level as the top part of the tongue 28 and press the strip against the cover by a spring force. The cutting edges 26a, 26b are situated at a lower level. The method of operation of this device is in complete agreement with that described earlier.

In the embodyments according to FIGS. 1 and 4 the strip roll is unrolled clockwise whereas in FIG. 6, the strip roll is unrolled counter-clockwize. The discharge device according to FIG. 6 has semicircular guide means 60, arranged inside the cover 2. The end 61 of said guide means 60 extend below the front end of said cover and form front stops for the strip roll. The casing 1 carries correspondingly formed guide means 62 and from FIG. 6 it is obvious that the strip roll rests against the guide means 62. Said guide means 60,62 constitute a support for the strip roll as well as limiting surfaces for said strip roll.

The discharge and cut off means for the strip according to the embodyment in FIG. 6 constitutes a portion arranged inside the front part of the cover 2 and consisting of a slightly directed, inner portion 63, transcending into a curved part 64 and terminating in a downwardly directed portion 65, extending below the front part of the cover 2. The guiding means arranged in the casing constitutes a inclined path 66 transcending in its front part into a upwardly directed tongue 68 via a shoulder 67. The tongue 68 has the generally shaping and function of e.g. the tongue 13 in FIG. 2, thus having edges 69 forming tear off devices.

The guiding means bear on or almost bear on the up side of the strip 4. A narrow discharge gap is formed between the guide means 65 of cover 2 and the upwards directed front part of the tongue 68. The function of this embodyment is exactly in accordance with the examples of FIGS. 1 and 4. Thus, by pulling the flap 6, the strip roll will be discharged and forces the strip, subject to the pulling force in such way, that said strip will automatically be torn off against the edges 69, simultaneously the flap of the next strip will be turned down due to the guide means 64, 65. When the first mentioned flap has been torn off, the flap of the next strip is uncovered and can easily be gripped.

The invention can naturally be varied also in other respects within the framework of the following claims.

I claim:

1. A device for tearing off pieces of the same predetermined length from a roll of fed flexible strip, said strip having punched lines forming tongues equally spaced along said strip with their spacing equal to said predetermined length and directed in the feeding direction for said strip, whereby the portion of each tongue which is firmly connected to the remainder of the strip is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the strip, said device comprising a casing for said strip roll, said casing having side walls and an open top, a cover pivotally connected to said casing and closing said top, said cover having an outwardly extending portion, another portion integral with the first-mentioned portion and extending in a downwardly direction relatively to the cover, said casing having a portion extending substantially parallel to the first-mentioned portion but spaced therefrom to form a gap for the passage of the strip out of the casing, a flange for temporarily arresting movement of said tongue integral with the thirdmentioned portion and extending close to the secondmentioned portion but spaced therefrom to form a gap for the continuing passage of the remainder of the strip, and tear-off portions on either side of said flange connecting the base of said flange to the side walls of the casing arranged for the cut-off of the remainder of the strip.

2. A device for tearing off pieces of the same predetermined length from a roll of fed flexible strip, said strip roll being stored in a container comprising a casing and a cover connected with said casing, said strip having punched lines forming tongues equally spaced along said strip with their spacing equal to said predetermined length and directed forward in the feeding direction for the strip, whereby the portion of each tongue, which is firmly connected to the remainder of the strip, is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the strip, said device comprising first guidance means being combined with said cover and second guidance means and cutting-off means, said cutting-off means being combined with said casing and being located on both sides of said second guidance means, said second guidance means comprising a separation unit located at the strip exit point and having a trapezoid shape corresponding to that of the bottom part of said tongues in order to, during passage of the strip, first guide the strip along a predetermined path, and then, to guide the tongue along one path and the remainder of the strip along another path, said last-mentioned path leading to the cutting-off means which are arranged to cut said remainder of the strip.

3. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said second guidance means having a channel-like shape with its front part of the bottom consisting of said separation unit which extends close to the first guidance means.

said second guidance means, a space being provided between said wall and said casing through which space said strip is fed. space being provided between said wall and said casing through which space said strip is fed. 

1. A device for tearing off pieces of the same predetermined length from a roll of fed flexible strip, said strip having punched lines forming tongues equally spaced along said strip with their spacing equal to said predetermined length and directed in the feeding direction for said strip, whereby the portion of each tongue which is firmly connected to the remainder of the strip is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the strip, said device comprising a casing for said strip roll, said casing having side walls and an open top, a cover pivotally connected to said casing and closing said top, said cover having an outwardly extending portion, another portion integral with the first-mentioned portion and extending in a downwardly direction relatively to the cover, said casing having a portion extending substantially parallel to the first-mentioned portion but spaced therefrom to form a gap for the passage of the strip out of the casing, a flange for temporarily arresting movement of said tongue integral with the third-mentioned portion and extending close to the second-mentioned portion but spaced therefrom to form a gap for the continuing passage of the remainder of the strip, and tear-off portions on either side of said flange connecting the base of said flange to the side walls of the casing arranged for the cut-off of the remainder of the strip.
 2. A device for tearing off pieces of the same predetermined length from a roll of fed flexible strip, said strip roll being stored in a container comprising a casing and a cover connected with said casing, said strip having punched lines forming tongues equally spaced along said strip with their spacing equal to said predetermined length and directed forward in the feeding direction for the strip, whereby the portion of each tongue, which is firmly connected to the remainder of the strip, is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the strip, said device comprising first guidance means being combined with said cover and second guidance means and cutting-off means, said cutting-off means being combined with said casing and being located on both sides of said second guidance means, said second guidance means comprising a separation unit located at the strip exit point and having a trapezoid shape corresponding to that of the bottom part of said tongues in order to, during passage of the strip, first guide the strip along a predetermined path, and then, to guide the tongue along one path and the remainder of the strip along another path, said last-mentioned path leading to the cutting-off means which are arranged to cut said remainder of the strip.
 3. A device as claimed in claim 2, wherein said second guidance means having a channel-like shape with its front part of the bottom consisting of said separation unit which extends close to the first guidance means.
 4. A device as claimed in claim 3, wherein said cutting-off means are sidewise connected to that part of the separation unit which has the greatest width.
 5. A device as claimed in claim 4, wherein said first guidance means has a wall extending to a point below said second guidance means, a space being provided between said wall and said casing through which space said strip is fed. space being provided between said wall and said casing through which space said strip is fed. 